In the last 7 years I have slowly started eliminating waste from my everyday life. It began as a way to save money. While transitioning to reusable everyday products I became aware of how wasteful I was. As we know how important it is to look after our planet, potential solutions like one that can be found on sites like http://www.filecenterdms.com that allows people to scan documents digitally instead of using paper are interesting. With people doing their bit to become environmentally friendly, this can make a difference when it comes to reducing waste.

After marriage I was blown away at the amount of garbage two people could create. The desire to “be green” became more important after I became pregnant. It is important to take care of this planet, as there is only one. Whether it is investing in period furniture (which will mean fewer trees are being cut to make new furniture), using solar panels to save energy or eating less meat, making a start in becoming eco-friendly can make a big difference to this planet.

The awareness that if the world didn’t start making drastic changes the future generation would be set up for failure. With that in mind I wanted to share things that I’ve learned, and highlight some of my favorite eco-friendly and reusable products.

I started with the low hanging fruit, I eliminated plastic bags by taking my own reusable shopping bags. I rid my home of paper towels by using paperless towels. Then when pregnant I made the choice to use cloth diapers. Cloth diapers became a gateway into the world of cloth products. They opened my eyes to cloth baby wipes, cloth nursing pads and even cloth menstrual pads. Cloth isn’t always the answer but substituting bamboo is also a great option. Bamboo is one of nature’s most sustainable and renewable resources making it a perfect substitution for paper and wood products.

I am not waste-free, but I try to think green and be conscious of the chemicals I expose my family to. I want to teach my daughter to respect our planet and I strive to be a good example for her.

For those of you who feel the same way, but are not sure where to start, I have developed this list of facts on disposable vs reusable and discuss my favorite reusable products. These items are simple to replace in your everyday life.

Paperless Towels vs. Paper Towels

The Facts About Paper Towels: 13 billion pounds of paper towels are used each year. That’s over 45 pounds of paper towels per person, per year. Paper towels are not recyclable since they don’t contain much fiber, making them purely waste. This waste adds up to 254 million tons of trash globally each year.

Why Choose Paperless Towels: When I decided to make the switch to reusable products, paper towels and napkins were the first items I replaced. I use Gina’s Soft Cloth Shop Paperless Towels for everything, drying hands, mopping up spills and cleaning up my messy 19 month old after meals. As far as cleaning up messes, paperless towels are far superior to paper. Gina’s Soft Cloth Shop’s high quality towels will last you a long time, simply wash and reuse! Read a full review here.

Purchase Gina’s Soft Cloth Shop Paperless Towels HERE

Reusable Food/Drink Pouches vs. Disposable Food/Drink Pouches

The Facts About Disposable Food/Drink Pouches: An estimated 15 billion disposable pouches ended up in landfills in 2016. These food and drink pouches are not recyclable through your local recycling program, some can be mailed into a Terracycle program. Less than 14% of disposable pouches get recycled. Another downside to these pouches is you can’t see what is inside. Already this year there have been recalls on a few brands of food pouches due to botulism risk and mold.

Why Choose Reusable Food Pouches: I prefer the Squeasy Gear Snacker over disposable pouches for many reasons. First these snackers can be used over and over, saving me so much money. Second, I know exactly what is going into them. I enjoy making my own purees or filling them with applesauce, yogurt, smoothies, even just water and using them as a sippy cup. Squeasy Gear Snackers are made of 100% food grade silicone and are mess free. Squeeze it, flip it upside down, no drips, no leaks. Read a full review here.

Purchase Squeasy Gear Snackers HERE

Silicone Storage Bags vs. Plastic Storage Bags

The Facts About Plastic Storage Bags: Every year, the average person uses nearly one pound worth of plastic sandwich bags. Doesn’t sound like much, but that’s a total of 540 plastic bags that are only used once. In the U.S. 20 million plastic sandwich bags end up in landfills every day.

Why Choose Silicone Storage Bags: Since I found Stasher I can pack my lunches and snacks guilt free. Stasher Storage Bags are made of pure food grade silicone and are made to out live a plastic bag. A strong press seal gives these bags an airtight seal. These bags are not only easy to open and close, but they actually stay closed! Stasher Bags are freezer safe, microwave safe and dishwasher safe. Don’t limit Stasher Bags to the lunch box. These are perfect for travel, school supplies, small toys and so much more.

Purchase Stashers Storage Bags HERE

Glass Food Storage Containers vs. Plastic Food Storage Containers

The Facts About Plastic Food Storage Containers: Plastic containers don’t last forever. The more you heat and cool your plastic food storage the faster the chemicals break down, leaching into your food. Heating your food in plastic containers will leach chemicals 55% faster than normal. Just because your plastic container is recyclable doesn’t mean it’s food safe. I never knew the numbers on the plastic containers indicate how food safe they are, and that some plastic containers are safer than others when it comes to food.

Why Choose Glass Food Storage Containers: You don’t have to worry about chemicals touching your food when using glass containers. I use Wean Green Glass containers they are 4-5 times stronger than regular glass. Wean Green Glass containers have a silicone seal to lock in freshness and prevent leaks. They are microwave, dishwasher and freezer safe. Wean Green containers come in different sizes and shapes making them perfect for snacking on the go. Wean Green is passionate about litterless lunches. A child averages 67 pounds of disposable lunch waste per school year.

Purchase Wean Green’s Glass Food Containers HERE

Silicone Kitchen Sponge vs. Disposable Kitchen Sponge

The Facts About Disposable Kitchen Sponges: The common disposable kitchen sponge is typically made of cellulose fiber, which is soaked in chemicals and then blended with sodium sulphate crystals and hemp fiber. When heated, the sodium sulphate crystals dissolve, leaving the holes and gaps commonly seen in sponges. Your disposable kitchen sponge can breed bacteria and it is recommended to replace your disposable sponge every 30 uses and it is not recyclable.

Why Choose a Silicone Kitchen Sponge: Kuhn Rikon’s Stay Clean Scrubber is made of food grade silicone and is BPA free. It is non-porous so it wont harbor bacteria or hold onto odors and can easily be tossed into the dishwasher to be sanitized. Kuhn Rikon’s Stay Clean Scrubber is safe to use on non-stick cookware as well as on all kitchen surfaces. It is so durable you will be able to safely use this sponge longer than a traditional sponge. The Stay Clean Scrubber also doubles as a lint brush, removing lint and hair when used dry. Read a full review here.

Purchase Kuhn Rikon’s Stay Clean Scrubber HERE

Cloth Diaper vs. Disposable Diapers

The Facts About Disposable Diapers:If you have a child in diapers you will go through an estimated 2,920 (8 diapers a day) per year. It takes 9 gallons of water to produce 1 disposable diaper. Worst of all it takes an estimated 250-500 years for a disposable diaper to decompose. Adding up to the 3rd largest consumer item in landfills. Disposable diapers contain toxic chemicals, drying agents, dyes and fragrances.

Why Choose to Cloth Diaper: To cloth diaper a child from birth to potty training takes about 24 diapers. Talk about significantly less waste. Bambino Mio diapers will grow with your baby thanks to their 3 rise settings and adjustable velcro style closure to get a perfect fit on the waist. Cloth diapers use super absorbent fabric to keep your baby dry instead of chemical gels used in disposables. The fabric alone allows more airflow to your baby, lowering the risk of diaper rash. Modern Cloth Diapers are fashionable. You wont find anything cuter than Bambino Mio’s prints.

Purchase Bambino Mio Cloth Diapers HERE

Reusable Cloth Pads vs. Maxi Pads

The Facts About Maxi Pads:Maxi pads are made of bleached rayon, cotton and plastics with added fragrances and chemicals used to absorb the menstrual flow. Most contain hazardous ingredients including dioxins, pesticide residues, unknown fragrance chemicals as well as adhesive chemicals. Approximately twelve billion pads and 7 million tampons end up in a landfill each year and that’s not including the individual wrapping they each come in.

Why Choose Reusable Cloth Pads: Bummis Fabulous Flo Pads are non toxic and a eco-friendly choice compared to pads. Made in Canada with a soft breathable organic cotton fabric manufactured in the USA. The Fabulous Flo Pads are super absorbent with a waterproof backing. Washing is easy, I rinse with my diaper sprayer after use and throw in with my diaper laundry. No diaper laundry, you can rinse well and add to your regular laundry. I air dry to help keep their shape and sunning will help with any stains. After reading about the chemicals in disposable pads, cloth pads is my new preference for myself and one day for my daughter.

Purchase Bummis Fabulous Flo Pads HERE

Tree-Free Bath Tissue vs. Toilet Paper

The Facts About Toilet Paper: Humans consume 27,000 trees daily to make toilet paper and each roll takes 37 gallons of water. Speaking of water, I still need to purchase a new toilet for my bathroom. It has been leaking slightly and there is a small crack in the side, which I no doubt think will get worse as time goes on. One of my friends said that the leak is concerning. She said that when a toilet leaks, it can sometimes indicate that there are some problems with the sewer system in the house. She suggested that I consider reading about trenchless pipe lining to replace my old pipe with a new one, without having to dig up the whole garden! Maybe we’ll look into that if the leak worsens. For now, I’ve done some research and have come across a kohler wellworth toilet review, which did help me make my decision as to what I am going to replace my old toilet with. Plus, if this new toilet that I am considering getting helps me save on water consumption, then that is even better. Anything that I can do to play my part in being eco-friendly is something worth doing. Anyway, back to the use of toilet paper. On average Americans use 57 squares of toilet paper a day, which adds up to 50 pounds annually. The United States uses more toilet paper per year than any other country in the world. These are daunting facts that leave me looking for other options.

Why Choose Tree-Free Bath Tissue: I can make the switch to cloth alternatives for many items but toilet paper is not one of them. So the best option for my family and the most eco-friendly option is Tree-Free Bath Tissue by Caboo. Tree-Free Bath Tissue is made from 100% Bamboo and Sugarcane pulp. Bamboo is the worlds fastest growing plant and can regenerate without the need of replanting making it also one of the most renewable resources on the plant. Caboo’s Tree-Free Bath Tissue is dependently strong and extremely soft, as well as, Enviormently Healthy, Biodegradable, and safe for septics. Read the full review here.

Purchase Caboo’s Tree-Free Bath Tissue HERE

Sources: Small Footprint Family Earth 911 Nurtured Family Soft Schools Southeast Green Reference Angies List The Soft Landing Raising Natural Kids Menstruation.com Plan Money Crashers Climate Kids Healthy Child Awesome Beginnings 4 Children

This article was inspired by Earth Day and treating each day as it’s own Earth Day. Be sure to enter our giveaway that run April 16th – April 30 to win some of these amazing products.

119 Comments on What On Earth

  1. I love these products. It is so important to use earth friendly products to help minimize waste and save resources for future generations

    • These products are so awesome. I love the silicone sponges, that’s a great idea!

  2. I’m happy to learn about Kuhn Rikon’s scrubber & Stasher silicon products. I exclusively use cloth wipes & cloth diapers & cloth napkins & am trying to transition to non paper towels & other reuseable products.

  3. The past year I have also been slowing switching over the things that we use in my house. Cloth diapers was our first. My favourite one yet. I have already done quite a few of the things you mentioned but, next I would like to change all of our plastic containers to glass! 🙂

  4. I have never heard of silicone sponges! That’s brilliant!!! I hate sponges they get so gross, I have got to try these!

  5. All are wonderful products. I will have to change the sponges I use. So nice to see more and more companies becoming earth friendly.

  6. I had never heard of a silicone scrubber or the silicone stasher bags. I am going to check those out right now. Thank you!

  7. Paperless Towels absorb so much more and a lot quicker than paper towels do. Not too sure how much power usage/detergent work out on the environment though. I’ve not heard of Tree-Free Bath Tissue before, I assume this is okay to flush down the toilet too?

  8. SUCH great info!! I am hoping to switch to paperless towels this year!! We go through an embarrassing amount of paper towels and it drives me insane!! Hubby is pretty obsessed so he will be the hardest to convert! I have already greened my period and plan to cd our next kiddo 😉

  9. We have made a lot of these changes as well. Definitely saves money and our health.

  10. I’d like to switch to paperless towels and the silicon kitchen scrubber – thanks for the recommendations.

  11. This is a great guide. I actually use the tree free toilet paper. I need one of those sponges!

  12. I’m loving that silicone sponge! We don’t use sponges for cleaning, so that would be an awesome alternative for us to try out!

  13. I love all of these ideas! We use towels instead of paper towels, cloth diapers, cloth pads, and glass containers. I want to eventually switch to all of these! I had no idea about the sponge, what a great idea! Thank you mamafox!

  14. I am so happy to find a company so responsible in their thinking.Keep up the great job!

  15. Thanks for the insights on how to conserve resources. My wife and I have started with cloth diapers, cloth wipes, and glass food storage. If we aren’t going to heat it up, we also reuse plastic containers that food came in (like yogurt containers and salsa containers with lids). You’ve got some other good ideas on here too and I’ll have to talk to her about replacing paper towels next, I think.

  16. Thank you for the intro to some of these products. Thank never heard about the silicone sponge or baggie.

  17. We use silicone food covers when storing food and reusable lunch containers and jars and we have practically eliminated our use of plastic wrap. I am excited to try the Paperless Towels! This is a great presentation of Green Products for the home.

  18. Awesome stuff here, I believe in sustainability, these are convenient and eco friendly at the same time!

  19. Wow, I hadn’t heard about silicone sponges before, but I really want one now. I don’t like how the regular ones just trap bacteria in.

  20. Would love to get one of those sponges, my husband is a “sponge” guy, where as I would use just a wash cloth so this would be a best of both worlds situation.

  21. We have been making monthly changes to go green this month we will be introducing Paperless Towels.

  22. What a great group of products. I really like the glass storage containers as a healthier alternative to plastic. They would last longer and not be all stained too.

  23. Love those glass storage containers. Crazy how long we’ve been using all these plastic and they are good for food, especially acid stuff.

  24. I love the reusable food pouches!! My kids love pouch food and it is so super easy to toss in my bag and take along. The reusable ones would save so much money and are so much better for the environment.

  25. I love how you give the options that are more environmentally friendly. Having a two year old now, I realize how much garbage we produce as a family. We need to reduce.

  26. Awesome products and I enjoyed reading about them, I would love to try the toilet paper, sounds great!

  27. What a wonderful article. The silicone sponge is new to me, I have to check it out. We have only one home, let’s take care of it!

  28. What awesome products! Our family is always looking for ways to be more ‘green’ and environmentally friendly!

  29. I would love to have the Gina’s Soft Cloth. I am tired of wasting money on paper towels.

  30. I too am gradually trying to ‘go green’. I especially am interested in the silicone sponge to replace my cellulose sponge in the kitchen. Gina’s Soft Cloth look like a great option to replace the paper towels too.

  31. It IS crazy the amount of waste we produce. I am working on reducing it. We used to recycle but our township recently voted to get rid of it (without spreading the news or having anyone show for public discussion). It sucked. So we burn boxes and paper during the winter to start our wood furnace. As far as products I love above, the Stasher brand storage bags look awesome. I want some!

  32. I definitely am going to buy some of those products. I get overwhelmed with it all……but I’m tired of all these unhealthy chemicals and plastics. Thank you for the great information.

  33. Boy you are good at keeping things clean ….but I remember the diapers bit …no thank you …as much as I babysitter Ill keep. Disposable diapers anytime

  34. This opens my eyes. I wasn’t aware of some of these options over here, eg. silicone scrubber, tree-free tissue. I’m switching to cloth diaper and maybe I’ll should give these other earth friendly options a try.

  35. These are great products, I use rags to clean to avoid paper towel waste. There are definitely more steps I can take to green my home though.

  36. Thank you for teaching me about some great products! I’m trying to slowly ‘go green’ and these products are a great way to keep progressing on the path of creating less waste!

  37. I try to be as earth-friendly as possible every day. I minimize paper towel use, I collect the cold water that runs from the tap before the hot water arrives and use it to water my plants, and I compost, among other things.

  38. This is an unbelievably awesome article! It just makes me realize I’m never too old to learn something new!

  39. I’ve never even heard of tree free toilet paper!! What an awesome invention! Thank you for sharing this!

  40. This definitely makes me think more about the products I use. I already use glass containers, reusable grocery bags and metal refillable water bottle. There are many other earth friendly options out there.

  41. I love reusable products! When I clean for money, I’m always carrying around a big bag of rags.

  42. I have heard of some of these products but not all. It’s wonderful to find new ways to become ecologically green. Thanks for sharing!

  43. Wow! I learned so much from this article. I will definitely follow up on some of these products. I especially like the idea of using glass food storage containers over plastic. I never thought about the chemicals being released with continuous use. And the soft cloths are something I’ll really be happy to use. I spend so much on paper towels. All great ideas.

  44. So important to be healthy for the Earth, if we don’t take care of her who will?

  45. This is a lot of great information! Thank you. I really want to make the switch to a more earth friendly life but it can cost so much ?

  46. I like the idea of the silicone sponges! Lots of great products to learn about and try in this article too!

  47. I started with cloth diapers (well, I guess I started with a garden and line drying my laundry) but am ready to take the next step into more reusable products.

  48. I had no idea there were re-useable sanitary pads! Thanks for the great list of green items that can help cut down on waste.

  49. Thank you for this giveaway! I can’t believe how many more ideas I’ve gotten from this post! I can’t wait to change over a lot of my waste.

  50. I don’t drink those pouch drinks (like capri sun, right?) because I don’t like them. So, I hadn’t heard about the mold growing inside them. Ick! the idea churns my stomach.
    I have a reusable “ziploc” style bag, but I’m leery of just buying them. There are a lot of tutorials for making your own and most do not specify using food grade plastic liners. I think that most people selling them (Etsy?) don’t bother to check for that either. I feel this is rather unfortunate since I don’t have the skill to make one (zippers? Ha!).

  51. REDUCE, REUSE, RECYCLE is something I teach my boys! I’d love to try the Kuhn Rikon scrubbers!

  52. I am a huge supporter of recycling and I always take my own shopping bags but after reading your article I realize there are so many more options of ways I can help the environment!

  53. I love all of those reusable container options for snack!! We are always bringing snack on the go and Id love to green that in our life!

  54. I’ve slowly been weaning us away from disposable products & learning to reuse/repurpose items that are.

  55. Earth Day is so important. Some good products here for sure. Wish more people observed it

  56. I am very interested in the tree free tp! I just haven’t been able to make the switch to cloth tp, so this really interests me. We use cloth diapers, cloth pads, and try to use more cloth napkins instead of paper towels. I’ve been wanting to make a “roll” of unpaper towels to try out, but haven’t had a chance to yet.

  57. I honestly had not read the numbers on waste until this post but am not surprised. Some weeks when I’m getting the garbage together for trash day I think how in the world could we create this much garbage. And we have cut back some on our paper products use. Very informative post.

  58. This is a great review. I have been slowly making changes, like using my own bags when shopping. I am due with my first baby in June and I am busy making cloth diapers, wipes and nursing pads. I am very interested in cloth sanitary pads and the silicone scrubber!

  59. What a wonderful product recommendations. Love all these products. Its very important to use earth friendly products. I believe in reuse, recycle and reproduce.

  60. You really do have the right idea…..I only wish companies (large companies) would start changing to acknowledge that our products CAN BE MADE TO BE MORE ACCEPTABLE FOR DISPOSAL INTO OUR WORLD. I applaud you……and your ideas. In the future, I want to try a few of your products.

  61. Thanks for the write-up. I did not realize all the alternatives available to help keep us earth friendly. Although I recycle, the waste is still tremendous.

  62. These are some wonderful products! I had never heard about the silicone sponges before, but I think they are awesome because they don’t trap bacteria in them.

  63. I love some of your suggestions. I think I want to buy some of the paperless towels. They are practical and I love the rainbow colors.

  64. I didn’t realize that silicone sponges existed! Definitely investing in one of those when we are done with our current sponges… and also silicone bags!!! we dislike our reusable sandwhich baggies, maybe we will try these ones next!

  65. All of these products sound amazing, I love being green! I definitely need to get reusable snack bags for my kiddos! I also love the idea of reusable sponges. 🙂

  66. Would love to try some of these products. I use cloth diapers with my daughter and I also use replay recycle plates, cups, utensils, tethers, and snack-pods.

  67. The reusable food/drink pouches will be great for my kids…our trashcan stay full of drink pouches!

  68. These are some pretty amazing products. Actually I think I would love to try the toilet paper.

  69. Lots of good info here! I really want to try cloth menstrual pads. Just gotta get over the icky factor 😉

  70. I didn’t know there were reusable sponges (that didn’t get all gross). That is something I definitely want to try!!

  71. I need a silicone sponge! I didn’t even know there was such a thing! I hate regular sponges!

  72. What great ideas! I’ve used reusable food pouches for a while now, but I have yet to use reusable paper towels. That’s next on my list!

  73. So many great ideas with products for solutions – I appreciate all the companies providing these creative products to help us all to help the Earth.

  74. Interesting article, we cloth diaper and collect recyclables. Thanks for the new ideas on other things we can do to help the planet!

  75. I like these products I am not totaly there yet but I am trying. Over the last year I have slowly gotten rid of my plastic containers and replaced them with glass. The best part is most of the glass jars etc were bought at thrift stores. All it took was to buy new lids for mason jars and ring seals for some of the others.

  76. Lots of great ideas here! I especially like the sillicone food bags instead of plastic bags.

  77. Wow, thanks for the good ideas. I try to go green most of the time, it’s very important to our family.

  78. These are some great products…some I’ve heard of and some are totally new to me, like the Silicone Kitchen Sponges. I never use sponges, but I will look for some of these to buy.

  79. I really like the idea of Paperless Towels. We haven’t switched to them yet, but I think we may!

  80. I have been getting rid of all of my plastic bottles and containers. I am now using a lot of glass products and I am so happy using them. They clean better also.

  81. Thanks for the tips. I hate styrofoam cups at work and take my own reusable plates and glasses.

  82. I don’t want to say I am to old to do this but some things I just know that I could never do. I am trying, no longer buy bottle water! When I go out the door I always fill my water bottle and if I drink it all hope I find a faucet to refill.

    NOW that is something that all parks, stores etc should have faucets so you refill water bottles………… as they say THAT WOULD BE A GOOD THING.

  83. I never knew that paper towels were not recyclable! Thank you for sharing all the information on these products.

  84. It is a great thing that we have such great choices , things that are better for our Earth. Now it is just a matter of getting everyone on board!

  85. This is my first time visit here and I am genuinely happy to read everything in one place. This page definitely has all the info I needed concerning this subject and didn’t know who to ask.

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